Congratulations!
Las Ramblas of Brownsville and Ana Liz Taqueria in Mission are semi-finalists for 2023 James Beard Awards. Las Ramblas was nominated in the category of Outstanding Bar, and chef Ana Liz Pulido is competing in the category, Best Chef: Texas.
Considered among the most prestigious honors, the James Beard Awards recognize outstanding talent in the culinary arts and hospitality throughout the U.S. Winners will be celebrated at a ceremony on Monday, June 5 at the Lyric Opera of Chicago. Be sure to congratulate and support both these restaurants.
RGV Chefs Invited to Inaugural “Encuentro” on Comida Casera
Three chefs with strong ties to the Rio Grande Valley will participate in the first-ever “Encuentro: The Native American Roots of Texas
Mexican Food” in Houston, May 19 and 20. They are former Brownsville native, Sylvia Casares, chef and owner of two Sylvia’s Enchilada Kitchen restaurants; Nadia Casaperalta, chef and culinary instructor at South Texas College in McAllen; and Larry Delgado, owner and chef of award-winning restaurants SALT, Salome and house.wine.bistro in McAllen. The two-day conference will focus on cooking comida casera, the home-style cooking of Native Texan Mexican American families.
“Complex and also straightforward are words that aptly describe comida casera, which includes the dishes of moms, abuelitas, aunts and uncles that families in the RGV have enjoyed over the past 500 years,” says Adán Medrano, chef specializing in Indigenous foods of Texas, author and president of The Texas Indigenous Food Project, the organization behind Encuentro.
During the event, the invited chefs will cook one of their specialty dishes and interact with scholars in the fields of anthropology, archaeology, history and Mexican American studies. Encuentro will document and explore the impact, native history and unique flavor profile of Texas Mexican food. The public is invited to the media and scholar/ chef panel on the evening of May 20. Visit texasindigenousfood.org/encuentro for information.
Former RGV Journalist Tells Story of Migrant Farmworker Becoming a Chef
Former Brownsville Residents Featured in Garden & Gun
Garden & Gun, a magazine that celebrates the best in Southern food, style, travel, music, art, literature and sporting culture, featured two former Brownsville residents in its February/March issue.
Chuck Charnichart and Alexis Tovias Morales are getting ready to open “what may well be one of the most important restaurants in Texas, a women-owned and -operated, South Texas-inspired barbecue joint called Barbs B-Q.” They hope to debut their eatery in Lockhart later this year. Read their story at gardenandgun.com.
Notable Openings: Throughout the Rio Grande Valley
Brownsville
Nolita NY Pizza
915 E. Elizabeth St.
Pluton Brewing Co.
805 E. Elizabeth St.
Edinburg
Castlehill Bistro
2113 W. Trenton Road
San Benito
Healthy Hut Kitchen
30747 E. Expressway 83, Suites E & F
South Padre Island
Nautico Island Grill
1313 Padre Blvd.
